 Yeah, welcome back. Before the break, we were looking at verses 16 to 18 of this first Thessalonians chapter 5. So in these verses, Paul is writing to people who are undergoing severe persecution and this is what he says to them. He says, rejoice always. Pray continually. Give thanks in all circumstances. Why should they do that? For this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. I mean, at least when it comes to people who are undergoing that level of suffering, Paul could have said, oh, it's okay if you're feeling bad and you're mourning and you're feeling depressed, all right. After all your circumstances are so bad, but no, he does not say that. He tells these people who are going through the toughest times and who in fact are in financial poverty. He says to them, rejoice always. Pray continually. Give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. And so when we are going through our own difficulties, times of trial, times when prayers are not getting answered during those times, God's will for us is that we should continue to rejoice and continue to give thanks. So we choose to rejoice knowing that God is faithful. He will not let us down. He's taking us through a season of suffering when prayers are not being answered because he has some specific purpose in mind. Maybe he's preparing us for something. So we choose to rejoice because we know that God is faithful. We choose to dwell upon his character and we choose to continue rejoicing. And it says pray continually. So over here it just basically means to not give up. Continue to pray. So we continue to believe in his faithfulness and rejoice in his faithfulness and continue to pray even though the answer seems to be delayed. So we do not regard it as a delay. We accept that God is a purpose. And so even though we are not getting the answer on time the way we had hoped, we choose to believe in his faithfulness and rejoice and continue to give thanks in these circumstances. So something that I started to do a few months ago, I began to thank the Lord even for the unanswered prayers. You know, because God has a purpose why he is not answering yet. There must be some reason for it. I mean, I do not know, but God would never just ignore the request being made by a child of his. So if he is delaying the answer, then there must be a good reason for it. So I have made a choice. You know, just recently, just a few months ago that even when my prayers are not being answered, I will thank him and say, Lord, I rejoice because you are faithful and I'll continue to pray. I will not give up because this is God's will for me. And in fact, for all of us believers. So just to remind ourselves of something that is said in Lamentations chapter 3 versus 31 to 33. Lamentations 3, 31 to 33, it says over there, no one is cast off by the Lord forever. Though he brings grief, he will show compassion. So great is his unfailing love for he does not willingly bring affliction or grief to anyone. That is the kind of God that we serve. So he does not willingly bring affliction or grief to anyone. If he is delaying an answer to prayer, it's because he has some purpose in mind, something good in his heart for us. So we can be very, very sure of the Lord's faithfulness. So even in times of trial, in all circumstances, we choose to continue to rejoice. We choose to continue praying continually and not give up. And we choose to continue giving thanks to the Lord. And so then the next instruction, because these are all things, these are all strategies which Satan tries to use to make us fall away so that we will be unprepared for the second coming. So this actually is a lovely passage. I know if someone is preaching a sermon on the second coming, they can actually take this passage and talk about how we can prepare ourselves and keep ourselves ready for the coming of the Lord. The next point that he makes is found in verses 19 to 21. Maybe we can have someone read all the way from verse 19 up to the end of the chapter. Or okay, maybe up to verse 24. I think that should be enough. So if someone could read out for us, verses 19 up to verse 24, please. Do not quench the spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things. Hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil. Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely. And may your whole spirit, soul and body be preserved, remised at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful. He who calls you is faithful. Who also will do it. Amen. Amen. So we are told, the next instruction that we are given is do not quench the spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt. But test them all. Hold on to what is good. Reject every kind of evil. It's one single thought that is being expressed in these verses. All the four verses are referring to one single thing. What does it mean when it says quench the spirit? In many places in the New Testament, the work of the Holy Spirit is compared with fire. In fact, it's found in all the Gospels. In Matthew, Luke. I think even in Mark. Matthew 311. This is basically what John the Baptist says over here. In Matthew 311 he says, But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, who sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. It's talking about the cleansing work of fire, where the fire burns up all the impurities. So the Holy Spirit is like a fire within us, burning up all the sinfulness and the wrong attitudes that we are holding on to. So it's a work which he's doing inside us continually. But we can choose to put out that fire if we want. So here, you know, Paul says, do not quench the spirit. The spirit is burning within you. He's doing his work of cleansing. He's preparing you for the second coming so that you can receive a great reward. He's doing all this for you. Don't throw water on the fire and, you know, quench it. Don't put out the fire. How do you put out the fire by treating prophecies with contempt? So when the Lord speaks to you through the leaders, when he speaks to you maybe through a prophet of God or through someone who is expounding the Scriptures and God corrects you, take that correction to heart. Accept that prophecy which is being given. Do not treat it with contempt. Because if you treat it with contempt, it's like as if you're quenching the fire, putting it out. You know, God wants to refine you so that you'll be more refined than even gold. So that is what the Lord is trying to achieve inside you. But if you dismiss what is being, you know, whatever prophecy is being given to you, then you will not benefit. So he tells, test them all. You know, when someone gives you a word from God in the form of a prophecy or you receive a prophetic word from the Scripture itself, test it. You know, make sure, is this in line with what God has said in the rest of the Scriptures? If it is in line with what God is saying, then hold on to it. But on the other hand, if whatever the prophecy falls, yes, in that case, you know, reject it. But whatever is being given to you truly from God, do not treat such prophecies, such corrections with contempt. Rather, you know, hold on to these things and do what is good. To not put out the fire which is burning inside is the advice that he gives. Because when we have this kind of an attitude, then God himself, the God of peace, he will sanctify us through and through. So anyone who is serious about, you know, getting sanctified and purified and becoming ready, ready, bright for Christ, anyone who wants to do that, if they can hold on to the Lord and accept all the correction that they are being given and, you know, live in a way which is pleasing to God, then God himself will sanctify them through and through. It says, I know that that entire person's spirit, soul and body will be kept blameless. In verse 24, Paul assures and he says, the one who calls you is faithful. So he will do it. He will sanctify you. He will make you blameless in your spirit, in your soul, in your body. The Lord will do that. Paul had earlier said the same thing even to the Philippian believers. In Philippians 1-6, where he says, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion. So this is an assurance that we can have that the Lord who is faithful will sanctify us through and through. So we need to recognize that there is a fire burning inside us whether we realize it or not. The Holy Spirit is doing a cleansing work inside each one of us. And so when we spend time in His presence, when we have a quiet time, when we meditate on the scriptures, when we spend time in prayer and allow the Lord to speak to us and we hear from Him, all of these things that are going on, there is a fire burning. The Lord is going about His work of doing His cleansing. There is a sanctification work going on inside. Don't take out bucket of water and pour it on the fire and put it out. Don't quench this fire is what Paul says. So let's be sensitive to the Lord, be sensitive to the correction that may be given to us and may the Lord enable us to continue holding on to Him so that we will be blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. So all the instructions that Paul is given in these verses, it is so that we can become blameless and be prepared and ready when the second coming of the Lord happens. So with these instructions, Paul kind of brings this epistle to a this particular letter to a close and then he hears certain reports regarding something which is why he sits down and he writes a second letter. So in this first letter he talks about how they are safe and secure in the Lord even if they die even the believers who have already died are safe and secure because they are now with the Lord and when the Lord comes to collect his people the ones who have died will come along with the Lord to collect those who are still alive. So he gives them this assurance because they were very worried that some of them are already dying and the Lord has not yet come and so they were very concerned what's going to happen to the soul of these people. Will they be destined for hell? They are worried and concerned which the people had and so Paul writes this letter giving them the assurance that even if they die they are safe in the Lord and so they must continue to encourage each other hold on to him and follow all of these instructions which will enable them to become more and more sanctified so that when the Lord comes they will be blameless. So he ends the letter on a positive note he has given them hope he has also explained to them how they can be sober and awake and what they need to do to be sanctified and so whatever he has written to them in this letter should have been sufficient but then later another report comes to him regarding a certain matter and then he sits down and he writes a second letter to them so we will get into that letter now the letter of the second the second letter to the Thessalonians but then you know it would be good if I can start a new recording so if you can just hold on a minute and conclude this recording and then we can start a new one